


Pink Cheeks and Wisps of White

by phantasmagorighoul (ghoullly)



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Coming Out, Confessions, Fluff, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, happy endings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-11
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:01:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22203778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ghoullly/pseuds/phantasmagorighoul
Summary: hajime finds himself fixated on nagito’s cheeks and the way his hair falls into his face. an attempt to hang out with him results in an awkward encounter and gives him a lot to think about—and nagito as well.
Relationships: Hinata Hajime/Komaeda Nagito
Comments: 4
Kudos: 321





	Pink Cheeks and Wisps of White

**Author's Note:**

> hello!! this was my komahina exchange piece for saintmae on tumblr!!
> 
> i’m currently posting this at ohayocon from my cell phone so i’m sorry for any mistakes haha.
> 
> white lie will be updated soon! enjoy!

Breakfasts on Jabberwock were really nice.

Everyone was still slowly getting used to being there, so not everybody showed all the time; there were a lot of people who were reminded too much of what happened in the Program to want to go and regroup where they used to do headcounts to ensure everyone survived the night. That was perfectly understandable.

But for those who  _ did  _ go, breakfast was arguably the best part of the day. It was incredibly refreshing to see each other again--alive and okay--and, to Hajime’s surprise, a lot of the past seemed to be exactly that--the past. Victims sat with the blackeneds that killed them, laughing and sharing stories from the lives they lived previous to their sophomore year. Teruteru got up extra early every single morning to cook; he’d even taken the time to memorize everyone’s favorite dish so he could incorporate them the best he could.

Hajime was relieved. By some stroke of luck, every single person had woken up even though they had a small chance of doing so, and he’d been able to (mostly) become himself again despite all of the tampering done to his brain. He enjoyed getting to talk to the friends he’d made inside the Program as if they had all been friends even before then, bouncing around between tables to have fragmented conversations and see how they were doing.

The one he sat with the most, though, was Nagito Komaeda.

He’d woken up last and Hajime had been there to personally help him up, and since then, Nagito seemed to be glued to Hajime the most out of the group. It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing; he didn’t cling to him or stalk him, but when it came to group situations, Nagito tended to follow him around like a lost puppy even if he didn’t say anything. Hajime truthfully didn’t mind; after all, Nagito had been the closest thing he had to a best friend in the Program until he had snapped. (Even after that, in a strange sort of way, Nagito still felt like his best friend, just distanced and strained.)

When it came to breakfast, Nagito always sat across the room by himself, only joining the others when prompted (which was seldom to never). Hajime always found it fairly sad--everybody else got a second chance, and it was only fair to give him one too--so he sat with him and talked to him more than the others. He told himself it wasn’t entirely out of pity; it wasn’t, truly, because Hajime enjoyed his company. Judging by the way Nagito would always gently smile as a faint blush dusted his pale cheeks anytime Hajime would sit across from him, Hajime figured Nagito enjoyed his, too.

This morning was no different; Akane and Nekomaru laughed heartily as they stuffed their faces together, Sonia, Kazuichi, and Gundham all sat together and chatted amongst themselves, and Mahiru and Ibuki stood by the food too distracted by conversation to grab anything yet.

Nagito was in his usual spot, nudging a potato around his plate uninterestedly, half-tempted to get up and leave.

“God, you eat like a bird.”

He lifted his head, met by Hajime as he slid into the seat across from him, plate piled high. Wordlessly, the brunet tilted his over a bit, pushing some fruit and eggs onto the nearly-empty plate before taking a piece of toast off of his and setting it on top. Nagito chuckled lightly as Hajime settled in, nudging Nagito’s plate back towards him.

“You need meat on your bones,” he urged, taking a bite of his own toast, “so eat it. And I know you like everything there, so don’t use that excuse, either.”

“Such an aggressive way of caring,” Nagito smiled, tucking white hair behind his ear. Despite his lack of appetite, he picked up his fork and stabbed a strawberry, popping it into his mouth to please the man across from him. Hajime hummed in response, politely swallowing before speaking.

“Of course.”

He wasn’t exactly sure what else to say, but it felt like enough, so the two sat in comfortable silence as they eavesdropped on the others.

The mechanical whirring had snapped Hajime back to reality, eyes flicking down to watch as Nagito flexed his fingers.

“How are you doing with that? Okay?”

Nagito nodded, flexing them a bit more before picking up the glass of water in front of him with it; his arm trembled and the water threatened to spill out, but he didn’t drop the glass once. He took a drink and set it back down.

“It’s getting better,” Nagito explained, rubbing the metal wrist with his organic hand, “I’ve been trying to do more things with my left side than I usually would. I’m just so used to completely ignoring my left hand that it’s easy to forget that the prosthetic is even there.”

Hajime nodded, examining it from where he was sitting.

“Thank you for building it for me.”

Hajime lifted his head again, Nagito’s gaze averted as the pink blush was back on his cheeks. The tips of his ears were a bit red, but thanks to his luck, his hair was wild enough to hide them from the other. Hajime laughed, nudging Nagito’s shin with his foot, which only seemed to deepen the blush.

“You don’t have to thank me anymore, you know,” he teased, “You’ve thanked me plenty of times since we’ve put it on. I know you’re thankful, Nagito; you’re welcome.”

Nagito’s pulse thumped so hard against his paper-thin skin that it was a wonder Hajime couldn’t see it against his neck. He blinked a little, smiling as he looked down at his plate to avoid looking at the brunet too long. Hajime just chalked it up to Nagito being Nagito and continued to eat, every so often urging the other to keep eating as well.

They continued making small talk until Hajime decided Nagito had eaten a decent amount; he excused himself so he could get up and talk to the others for a bit, but when he went to go back to his seat, Nagito had already left. A pang of disappointment hit the Hope’s chest, but only for a moment; he had just wanted to talk to him more, as all. He helped Teruteru clean everything up as the others began to leave as well.

The bittersweet thing about Jabberwock was that nobody really had jobs--everything was provided to them by the Future Foundation. Eventually they would get to go back to the mainland, but for the time being, they didn’t have to worry about anything and had all the free time in the world.

Hajime knew that it would one day become boring (and an echo in the back of his mind already claimed that it was), but he was content with it now.

Typically, whenever he didn’t have plans, he’d wander around the island until he found something to do. After breakfast, Kazuichi invited him to hang out for a while, which he did; after visiting with Kazuichi, he stopped by Mikan’s cottage to make sure she was okay since she had been avoiding leaving unless she absolutely had to. Once ensured she was alright, Hajime couldn’t think of anything else to do, so he chose to go to the library and pick a random book to read cover to cover.

The library was huge, and it (thankfully) wasn’t vandalized like the library in the Program had been. There were stacks of books on the floor where they had been taken out ages ago and never returned to their shelves; the air smelled old in the best possible way. The sound of Hajime’s steps echoed against the wide open space as he walked between the towering bookcases, wandering into the middle area where a handful of tables lingered. He had no idea what book he wanted to read; he figured he could just peruse the shelves and see what caught his eye.

“Ah, Hinata-kun!”

Hajime turned towards the direction of the voice; hidden between some of the stacks on the upper level was Nagito. He gave a wave of his metal hand before finding one of the ladders, holding on with one hand with a couple of books tucked under his other. Hajime went over to take them out from under him so the white-haired man could safely get to the ground floor. When Nagito’s feet hit the tile, he lifted his head with a gentle smile of appreciation, his cheeks pink again.

_ His cheeks are always so flushed and warm. _

Hajime’s heart skipped against his ribs and he scratched his head so he could focus on a sensation someplace other than his chest.

“If I’d have known you were going to come here, I would have offered to walk with you!” Nagito ran a hand through his fluffed hair, striding over to one of the tables. Hajime instinctively followed, the other’s books still under his own arm.

“I didn’t originally plan to. I just got bored, as all.” Hajime tended to get bored fairly easily; Nagito knew this was because of Izuru. The luckster sat down, nudging away some of the hardcover books that had already been on top of the polished oak to make room for the books he had chosen. 

“Ah, I understand. I figured I would come here and continue reading from where I left off the other day; I don’t have much better to do.” 

“Of course! I forgot you were a bookworm.” Hajime smiled, sitting down in the chair next to the other, setting the books in front of him. Oddly enough, he could feel Nagito tense next to him and saw him shift uncomfortably out of the corner of his eye. When he glanced over to see what was wrong, Nagito’s soft green eyes were a bit averted, yet his body was angled politely towards him. Hajime was somewhat confused but didn’t press any further; Nagito could get nervous sometimes and he suspected that he might have been having an off day.

Looking back to the stack of books he’d carried for the other, Hajime read each title in his head as he shuffled through them, the smile on his face fading a bit as he entered analytical mode. Nagito was silent, but a pale hand reached over and tried to gently tug a book from underneath Hajime’s grip.

_ There seems to be a common theme here. _

“Human sexuality... that seems like it would be interesting to read about,” Hajime said, nudging the books back over to Nagito. “I always thought it was cool.”

The luckster laughed almost forcefully and nervously, pulling them on the other side of himself so they were almost hidden away from the brunet. “Me too.”

Hajime furrowed his brow, a little confused, but sensed the other’s worsening nerves and attempted to drive the conversation further. “Is that why you’re reading about it? Just out of curiosity?”

Nagito nodded, giving him a small grin, but it was hard for him to hide the tense body language he held. “Yes, just... curious.”

Hajime nodded in return, waiting for the man to go on; he didn’t, his smile distancing further away from a smile and closer to a grimace. The brunet cleared his throat, trying to glance past the arms wrapped in the green jacket to get a peek at the spines again. Nagito shifted in his seat and strategically pushed them further behind him.

“What are you reading about now in specifics? Statistics? Community?”

The white-haired man hummed, looking away as he chuckled in thought. “Um...”

Much to Hajime’s surprise, he didn’t say anything else. His expression fell shamefully as if he were caught with his hand in the cookie jar and his cheeks began to burn. Hajime sat in wait of a response, but it didn’t even seem like Nagito could think of anything to say.

Silence hung in the air long enough for it to become awkward. Puzzle pieces began to shift together in Hajime’s head.

The nerves, the topic, the cute pink cheeks.

_ Ah--stop focusing on that! _

“Nagito,” Hajime started, tilting his head with a soft, knowing smile. “We’re best friends, right?”

Nagito’s cheeks burned a bit darker and he squeezed his hands together tightly in his lap. He stuttered over his words. “Ah, ah, um--I--yes.”

“I don’t want you to be offended by me asking you something, okay?” Hajime turned to look his friend in the eye, who was wearing an expression that told the brunet that he was likely internally panicking but was trying to hide it. Nagito didn’t stop him, though, and nodded.

“Of course, H-Hinata-kun. What’s on your mind...?” His voice cracked.

“Looking at these books--and thinking about some of the things you’ve said and done before--Nagito, are you gay?” Hajime laughed lightly, feeling a bit ridiculous in his wording.  _ In this day and age, it’s not really a big deal.  _ “Come to think of it, you’ve never said a single flirtatious thing towards any of the girls, have you? The  _ guys,  _ however...” Hajime’s own cheeks flushed as he began to realize how many teasing things Nagito had said to him before. 

_ Actually, a good majority of those flirtatious things are targeted at me... _

Nagito just blinked for a moment, looking as if he were a deer in the headlights. His cheeks were dusted with a deep red rather than his typical pink and his chest rose and fell at a quicker rate. Green eyes searched Hajime over, pupils dilated as he tried to think of something to say. Unable to get the words to come out, the white-haired man abruptly stood up, bangs hanging in his face as he pulled his jacket tightly around himself.

“I--I’m sorry, Hinata, I have to go--” His voice trailed off as he shook his head and held up a hand in apology, quickly striding toward the entrance.

“No--wait--Nagito!” Hajime called with his hands out, standing up in panic, “That wasn’t supposed to sound like a bad thing!”

By some miracle, the luckster stopped in his tracks, arms wrapped protectively around himself as he stood with his back to Hajime. He said nothing for a few moments, Hajime’s blood loud in his ears as he feared he made a terrible, terrible mistake. Nagito turned his head a bit, and the vulnerability visible on his face made Hajime’s chest twinge in an unidentifiable emotion.

“It’s... not...?”

“Of course not, Nagito,” Hajime let out a sigh of relief, smiling gently, “It was just a question. That’s all. It doesn’t matter whatsoever what your sexuality is! You’re my best friend; I just kind of figured you’d be more open about something like that with me, I’m sorry.”

Nagito blinked, turning to face Hajime, but he still stood where he was and hugged himself. He looked on the verge of tears, eyes looking someplace by Hajime’s feet, his mouth tight. Izuru droned from deep within him that he should have just left it at that and changed the subject, but Hajime didn’t have anywhere near as much impulse control. His voice was low and gentle as he spoke again.

“How long have you known?”

Nagito was silent, swallowing as he considered the answer to Hajime’s question. The brunet still stood in front of his chair, determined to make the other feel comfortable enough to come back over where he had been before. Finally, Nagito lifted his head, walking back over with cautious steps.

“Since grade school,” he explained, breathy voice soft as if he were suddenly aware that they were in a library, “I always thought the boys in my classes were cute. Girls liked me, but I didn’t even really care.” Hajime sat back down as Nagito drew closer, and he was glad he did when the other sat back in his seat, hands folded nervously in his lap as he picked at his fingers. “I thought it was normal. I didn’t realize that I was expected to like girls and not boys.”

Hajime nodded, allowing Nagito the space to vent if he needed it, but he seemed to want to leave it at that, turning his head with downcast eyes. The brunet smiled, leaning in a bit.

“Wow, that’s really cool you learned that about yourself so early!” Hajime felt his cheeks flare with heat in horrified anticipation of what was about to spill from his mouth, but he forced himself to say it anyway. “I only realized in high school, haha.”

Nagito suddenly came back to life, snapping his head in his direction with a gaze that looked borderline horrified. His eyes were blown wide and his mouth hung open as he reeled back a bit, hand to his chest.

“Hajime-- _ you’re--?” _

“--Well, not exactly gay; I’m bisexual,” Hajime explained calmly, trying to convey that this really wasn’t a big deal even though he was positive he was as red as the design on Nagito’s jacket. He laughed it off, even as Nagito’s own face flushed. “I always had a thing for girls, but my freshman year, I started getting crushes on a couple of guys in homeroom. I think the reason I realized so late was because none of the guys from my hometown class were really that attractive.”

Nagito nodded, looking to the side, his expression still shocked. His hands trembled in his lap and Hajime frowned; he was still nervous, which wasn’t good.

“No big deal,” Hajime repeated, smiling gently at Nagito when he lifted his gaze, “See?”

The other nodded again, his eyes drifting further down Hajime’s face, fixated on his lips with a far-gone expression. The brunet felt his heart thump harder in his chest, but he forced himself to stay put and wait for whatever the other did next. Nagito eventually looked back up, tucking wispy white hair behind his red ear, and stood back up on slightly-trembling legs.

“T-Thank you, for your--a-ah--support, H--H--” Nagito squeezed his eyes shut and dug his nails into his palms, swallowing, “--HHHHHinata. Kun.”

If Hajime was a bit skeptical about the apparent crush he’d realized Nagito had on him over the course of the time they were sitting there, he was nearly positive about it now. He sat slightly mesmerised as he watched Nagito wipe his palms on his black skinny jeans, pulling his jacket further around himself.

“I--I forgot, I promised Tsumiki-san I’d meet her f-for, um, tea,” the luckster smiled, visibly horrified (and a very bad liar, Hajime noted), “s-so I should probably get going before I’m late.”

Nagito bowed politely, chain on his belt clinking against itself as he moved. “T--Thank you for spending time with me--Hajime--! Even though it was short!”

“Ah, of course, Nagi--”

Hajime furrowed his brow with an intrigued grin as Nagito hurried away, not even allowing his friend to finish his sentence. The brunet sat in stunned silence as he listened to the soft footsteps echo further and further away (quickening in pace closer to the door he got); he didn’t move until he heard the door close, clicking in the latch.

_ Well, that was something... though, I feel kind of bad... I didn’t mean to scare him. _

The Hope scratched his head, his heart light in his chest. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that it was slightly assholish to put the other man on the spot like that--clearly, Nagito was a little insecure about himself, even though he had no reason to be. After all, nobody on the island would care what his preference was! In fact, Hajime was almost certain that Teruteru and Mahiru were both open about being bisexual and lesbian, respectively, and no one batted an eye. He wouldn’t tell Nagito this, but Kazuichi and Ibuki had both asked Hajime what way Nagito leant on separate occasions. Whenever the others would joke with Nagito about ogling the girls--on the beach, for example--he would laugh it off and insist that he respected the girls far too much to stare at them. At first, Hajime thought this was because he was a respectful guy (and he truly was), but thinking about it now, he realized he likely did so because he simply wasn’t interested in any of them.

Hajime  _ did,  _ however, catch Nagito innocently blushing around Nekomaru when he’d take his shirt off on a hot day, or Kazuichi when he’d tie his hair back with his face slicked with lithium grease, or Hajime when he’d say something particularly funny.

Or Hajime when he’d ramble on to Nagito about how important he was when he was having a bad day, or Hajime when he’d ask him questions about his physical and mental health to make sure he was doing alright, or Hajime when he’d agree to hang out with him.

Come to think of it, Nagito blushed a  _ lot  _ when he talked to Hajime.

The brunet found himself blushing in return, touching his cheeks as he felt them burning. His heart fluttered and he cursed it--not knowing why--but the more he tried to fight it, the lighter it became.

There may have been a small possibility that Hajime was flattered and also slightly infatuated with the luckster.

_ Why though? I’d never thought about this before... _

And it was true--he hadn’t. But he’d always thought Nagito was incredibly beautiful for a man; his skin was like snow and completely free of imperfections. His hair was wild yet tamed at the same time, wispy and framing around his defined face. He, even after what had happened in the game, tried his best to smile and have a positive outlook on life for the others, even if he didn’t have that same outlook towards himself. He was always kind and gentle.

Realizing that Nagito--to a degree--also found Hajime attractive had been the icing on the cake, apparently.

Hajime shook his head to try and free himself from the thoughts and glanced back at the books sitting on the table.

He smiled warmly at the thought of the luckster carefully picking them out, eager to see what information hid between the covers.

Another thought crossed his mind that made him chuckle out loud.

“Wait, Mikan doesn’t even  _ like  _ tea.”

...

Hajime had been hoping to sit with Nagito at dinner to ease his nerves (and also see if his heart grew airy now that he’d realized he had a slight crush). However, for the whole hour and a half that was open for the Remnants to eat, the taller man never appeared. The brunet opted to sit with Sonia, Gundham, and Kazuichi instead, laughing and talking with them, but the other never left the back of his mind.

_ I really hope I didn’t offend him or embarrass him too badly. _

Once everybody who came dispersed, Hajime went back to his cottage, glancing at Nagito’s door before he went inside. Light shone through the crack next to the doormat, so he knew he was home. He thought about stopping by, but he decided against it, figuring he needed to recharge.

He’d showered, watched TV for a while, and ultimately decided to lay down at 10. It was funny that some of the killing game habits remained instilled within everyone even though the rules were no longer in place--everyone instinctively rose at 7 as well. He was tired, but as he laid in bed trying to sleep, he found that he couldn’t. His mind kept drifting to Nagito.

_ Nagito, Nagito, Nagito. _

Every time he mulled over his name, his appearance, or his personality, Hajime felt his heart move further up his throat. 

_ I’m... attracted to Nagito Komaeda. _

At the beginning of the day, if someone had told him that he was, he would have laughed it off--he wouldn’t have realized the signs. Perhaps he would’ve thought of it as a harmless squish, but something about knowing that it was reciprocated tenfold made Hajime feel much more serious about it.

_ Nagito Komaeda is attracted to me. _

Hajime supposed he always was; he had nearly confessed to him in the game, now that he thought about it, before aborting the confession last second. He’d showered him with gifts (like his favorite mochi) and was overly protective of the brunet. (Actually, he’d had liar’s disease and told Hajime that he hated him--had he confessed right then and he was only JUST NOW realizing?? Was he really that dumb?)

He hadn’t realized he’d gotten out of bed and slid his shoes on until he was shuffling along the dock, night air chilly on his skin.

He almost felt like he was outside of his body and watching himself as he knocked on Nagito’s door, standing in wait.

_ Izuru, is this you that’s driving me to do this? _

Hajime could almost hear the monotone in the back of his mind, complaining of getting bored of the repetitive thoughts.  _ I don’t want to listen to you mull this over much longer. It is better to act than to dwell. _

The other didn’t come to the door, and Hajime rubbed his arms in an attempt to warm them up, the water making the air colder than usual. After another beat of no answer, the Hope went to turn on his heel, figuring he could always check in on him tomorrow.

The door behind him clicked open, warmth from the cottage gracing over the backs of his arms. Hajime turned his head, met by Nagito, who had the door cracked open just enough to see out of it.

Hajime concluded that he was most definitely on autopilot for the time being when he blinked at the white-haired luckster, no hesitation whatsoever. He didn’t even allow the other to get a word in.

“Nagito, do you want to go on a date?”

Hajime thought he was going to have to catch Nagito before he fell, shock spreading across his face as he choked, grasping at his chest. Soft cotton balled in his fist and he hunched over slightly and gasped for air.

_ “Hinata--are you trying to give me a heart attack--?” _

It was an interesting reaction, to say the least, but Hajime forced Izuru to stop treating the man like a social experiment and more like the fragile guy he was. He supposed Izuru couldn’t really help it; he was wired that way--to seek after anything he could find interesting.

He reached out to place his cold hands on Nagito’s biceps to steady him, the pale skin burning hot. “Hey, hey, Nagito, relax, it’s okay!”

The luckster lifted his head; his green eyes were dilated immensely as he looked the Hope over, trying to catch his breath. He was so, so vulnerable, and Hajime felt slightly honored that he was one of the only ones who had ever seen him like this. 

“Can I come in?”

Nagito swallowed and nodded, turning and floating into his cottage. Hajime followed, shutting the door behind him, watching from the mat as Nagito sat on his bed (it was messy, Hajime noted, he must have been sleeping). Frail arms wrapped around his own torso, pulling his legs up to cross them against the sheets. He wore pajama pants that were almost a size too big, falling down a little and revealing sharp hipbones. 

“You know, Hajime,” Nagito finally said, voice breathy as he was on the verge of tears, “it’s not nice to tease.”   


“I’m not teasing you,” Hajime responded immediately, sounding a bit hurt at the idea, “I’m serious.”

Nagito just shook his head, inhaling sharply as he hid his face in his hands. Hajime approached him carefully, not wanting to upset him further but not wanting to leave him as he was.

“I should have tried harder,” Nagito began, voice muffled in his hands, “I shouldn’t have admitted it so easily. I should have denied it.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Hajime insisted, moving closer. He sat down on the bed slowly as to not disturb the luckster much.

“I wish I didn’t mess everything up. I wish I could just be normal,” Nagito sniffled, and Hajime happened to notice that his hands were wet with tears, “What bad luck. I wish I could swallow my feelings, but I--” He wiped his eyes, wedging a hand in his hair, “--but I  _ can’t--” _

“--Nagito, please listen for a minute!” Hajime threw an arm around the other’s shoulders, pulling him close and strapping his other arm around his chest. Nagito seemed a bit thrown off by the embrace but welcomed it. “You’re normal. Your feelings don’t make you any less ‘normal’. Ignoring your feelings isn’t healthy. I’m glad you trusted me enough to tell me, but I also want to apologize.”

The fragile man looked over to the Hope with glistening green eyes, confused. Hajime cleared his throat, reaching out to hold a wet hand. It didn’t bother him no matter how self-conscious Nagito silently was about it.

“I didn’t realize that you weren’t exactly comfortable in your skin just yet. I didn’t mean to put you on the spot like that; it was rude of me and I’m really sorry.” Hajime looked at the plaid of Nagito’s pants, squeezing his hand. “It was just a genuine, honest question. I think no differently of you than I did before. If anything, haha...” The brunet tilted his head; it was his turn for his cheeks to dust pink. “It made me realize that I might be attracted to you? Just a little?”

Nagito’s tired eyes were wide as he looked Hajime over in disbelief, mouth hung open slightly. His hand was still held by the other, and in a move of nervous longing, the luckster intertwined their fingers. His heart panged when Hajime didn’t pull away, rather squeezing his hand tighter.

“What...?” He finally spoke. He seemed a little hurt, but only because he felt that Hajime was wasting his time on someone like him. “Why?”

“Why not?” Hajime countered mindlessly. “You’re gentle, you’re sweet, you’re pretty...” He looked to the ceiling, sucking in a deep breath before he continued. “You always spend time with me even though you could spend time with the others. You deal with my insistence that you take care of yourself better and you actually  _ do  _ if I push you hard enough. You put up with my temper and my issues with geometry.” He stifled a giggle out of the other, which he took to be a good sign. He smiled himself, chuckling. “What the fuck is a dodecahedron?”

Nagito began to laugh, eyes slightly hidden behind the apples of his cheeks as he smiled, and Hajime’s cheeks burned lightly. The paler man put his metal hand overtop Hajime’s that he held in his organic one, squeezing carefully with the prosthetic. 

“Okay, okay, Hinata-kun,” His skin was flushed beautifully. “I... didn’t realize you had feelings as well.”

_ He actually didn’t openly admit to having feelings until now. I had just put two and two together. _

“I don’t think I realized either,” Hajime admitted, “because I thought you were straight.”

_ “Huh?”  _ Nagito was shocked again, but for an entirely different reason. “Really?”

“Yeah. I always thought you were pretty, but I don’t think I let myself get fixated on it for too long because I didn’t want to catch feelings for someone I didn’t have a chance with. Nobody else on this island compares to you.”

Nagito was flattered--he instinctively wanted to argue, but his mind trailed back to Hajime trying to get him to talk better about himself. He thought it was ironic that he’d considered Hajime the unreachable one; the idea that Hajime thought the same thing about him seemed insane.

Though not impossible, apparently, he supposed.

The white-haired man let Hajime’s hand go, pulling back and chuckling lightly. “What luck... I wonder what bad luck will follow this?” He looked up at the other, wiping his cheek again. “Hinata-kun thinking I’m pretty... I really am lucky.”

Hajime knew there was a compliment in there somewhere, but he made the decision to brush it off to focus on reassurance instead. “Enough with your luck; can’t you allow yourself to be happy, Nagito?” The brunet brushed some of the white hair behind his ear. “You and I both know that our luck counters the other. Our luck is forfeit as long as we’re close. Nothing bad could follow this because I cancel you out.”

Boldly, Hajime reached out to hold Nagito’s chin, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead. “You deserve to be happy, so you should be.”

The luckster nearly melted, giggling and hugging himself in reaction. Hajime chuckled tiredly, pleased that the other no longer seemed bothered by the earlier events. Seeing Nagito genuinely smile made him feel butterflies; he was truly gorgeous. The prettiest boy he’d ever seen.

Hajime rubbed one of his eyes in fatigue. “So? What do you think?”

Nagito sighed in content, splaying his hands across his knees with a small grin on his face. Ultimately, he looked up, gaze gentle and genuine.

“If you mean this, Hinata-kun, and you truly wish to take me on a date--” Nagito smiled and Hajime’s heart melted, “--then I’d love to.”

The brunet broke out into a grin, feeling giddy like a high schooler. “Great!”

“Great!” Nagito echoed, nervous now for an entirely different reason.

“Then! I should go!” Hajime stood, and Nagito nodded in understanding, nodding too. “I don’t want to keep you up! Sorry to bother!”

“You aren’t bothering me, Hinata-kun,” Nagito chuckled, smiling behind his hand, “You can come to me any time. Isn’t that what best friends are for?”

“Hahaha! Yeah!” Hajime heard Izuru taunting him in the back of his mind for being so awkward.  _ What happened here? You’ve lost your composure.  _ He made his way to the door and opened it. “So--I’ll see you tomorrow at breakfast. Yeah?”

The luckster nodded, smiling with his teeth as Hajime drifted out onto the dock again. “Yes, I’ll be there.”

“Okay! Cool! Goodnight, Nagito!”

Nagito’s eyes were warm as he cracked the door. “Goodnight, Hinata-kun. Sleep well.”

The first thing Hajime did when he got back to his cottage was hit his back against the door and let out a loud groan, sliding down onto the floor.

_ What the hell was that? _

Why had he suddenly gotten so nervous? Nagito seemed to be fine. Everything went swimmingly. Nagito felt better and he’d scored a date. They were going on a date. He was going on a date with the gorgeous, elusive Nagito Komaeda.

_ Oh... my god. _

He couldn’t believe he’d actually done that. He wasn’t one to act on impulse very often. 

_ But don’t you feel better now? Nagito certainly does. _

Izuru could be a pain sometimes, but Hajime could be thankful for him every so often.

He’d climbed back into bed and slept like a baby. He had no idea what they were going to do on their date, but he felt like a teenager again as he dreamt of wispy white hair and pink-dusted cheeks.


End file.
